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A review by lazygal
The May Bride by Suzannah Dunn
3.0
Wolf Hall is really having its moment, isn't it? Ditto the Seymour family! This is supposed to be Jane's story, very much pre-her becoming King Henry VIII's wife, but really most of it is Jane's impressions of, and reacting to, her sister-in-law Katherine. The reality is the very little (virtually nothing) is known about Katherine, which gives the author a lot of room to play.
It's a pacing problem that cost this stars: if this were a longer book, the slow pacing would have been more appropriate, but as it is the ending is rushed while our getting to know Katherine and the life at Wolf Hall take too long to unfold. Because this is from Jane's point-of-view, there are things that happen that somewhat escape her but are critical to the story.
While I love historical fiction and nonfiction about this period, this isn't a book I'd necessarily recommend before works by Philippa Gregory, Alison Weir or Hilary Mantel.
ARC provided by publisher.
It's a pacing problem that cost this stars: if this were a longer book, the slow pacing would have been more appropriate, but as it is the ending is rushed while our getting to know Katherine and the life at Wolf Hall take too long to unfold. Because this is from Jane's point-of-view, there are things that happen that somewhat escape her but are critical to the story.
While I love historical fiction and nonfiction about this period, this isn't a book I'd necessarily recommend before works by Philippa Gregory, Alison Weir or Hilary Mantel.
ARC provided by publisher.